Paradise Lost
by spacemonkey69
Summary: For him, paradise had always been the thought of happiness, something that money, maids and houseboys could never bring him. Something that seemed unattainable. Drabble Please R


Okay, I really don't have much of an idea where this came from...nor do I think it makes much sense! It probably does, but I am sleep deprived (which I have found can be either very usful, or very BAD when writing!) But I think this is alright! And it is my first fic that spans 25 years, so that's pretty cool (I guess its around 25 years anyway!) Inspiration came from the song 'Innocent Eyes' by Delta Goodrem...sort of! And the name was inspired by an episode of Stargate called, you guessed it, Paradise Lost! That became intergral to the story too, so..ah hell, you will all read it! Please read and review!

I do not own friends/actors/characters but I do own tired eyes from a night out on the town (yawn)

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For him, innocence had been lost at an early age; with the regurgitation of a wonderful Thanksgivings dessert.

Any semblance of paradise that he had held onto had also been lost at that moment; not that there ever had been paradise.

Money had never equalled paradise, unless you were confused with your values.

Maids had never equalled paradise, unless you adored having people cater to your every whim.

Houseboys had never equalled paradise; they had instead ruined any chance of it ever occurring.

For him, paradise had always been the thought of happiness, something that money, maids and houseboys could never bring him. Happiness was only something that could be delivered by his parents, with a gesture of love, both to him and each other.

He had, on occasion, received that gesture, but it had always been aimed towards him, and only him; never to one another. Love had been lost long ago between the two; perhaps never existing at all.

All that had remained between the two was harsh words over a strained dinner table, spite at all occasions, and competition on who could bed more young males; him or her.

Love had never been a strong factor in the Bing household, and when it had been destroyed completely, it had brought down his innocence and belief that paradise could once be sought.

Since then, his eyes had held intelligence beyond his years; the sure sign that his love of Thanksgiving had been lost, as had his thought of perfection.

His eyes had told people that he had grown up early; innocent eyes gone years before they had outstayed their welcome. Whispers of the poor little rich boy with the seductress mother and the cross-dressing father had been heard often, but wisdom beyond his years had taught him to ignore such comments.

A world weary look at life had been the only way he saw things, until he realised that it wasn't the way to live. It was the way to surely lose his mind.

He had sought out his long lost innocence; imagining that it had never left him, and his eyes were still that of a child's. Dinner parties, shrinks and half-hearted attempts at smiles had been replaced by rubber chickens, backtalk and smirks, and he had kept his mind from running off.

He had never regained his innocence but he had pretended; the only way he could deal with his parent's antics and his missing paradise.

But still, there was a bitterness about him; appearing at opportune moments. Thanksgiving was a time to be bitter, and a time for him to avoid dessert; what was once beautiful now pungent in his mouth. Regurgitation never happened on the holiday, because he simply refused the food.

Years past and eyes still held intelligence that didn't belong there, but it was hidden beneath Vanilla Ice look-alike contests, temp jobs and Emotional Knapsack. The child that had been forced to age too quickly still lingered, pushing away any attempt to steal his innocence once more.

But still, there was something missing.

Paradise was lost, and he had started to believe that it would never be found for him; never exist in his content life.

And then there had been her.

Eyes like sapphire, hair like a gods, face like that of Aphrodite; all the cover of a princess. He had been in awe of her; a servant or lowly stable boy to her breath-taking kingdom. For years, he had watched the unattainable, breath leaving his longs on many separate occasions with a simple blue eyed gaze. She was beautiful. She was spectacular. She was precious.

But, even through his self imposed innocence, he had seen that she was beyond him. The stable boy was never meant to court the princess.

But there had apparently been no rules concerning the princess courting the stable boy. A drunken kiss in a foreign country - not far from the kingdoms of old – and she had no longer been unattainable. Eyes like sapphire, meant only for him; hair, soft under his fingers, Aphrodite face glowing with happiness. The princess had fallen in love with the stable boy and he had become her prince.

Years past, and eyes still held intelligence that many believed didn't belong there, but it was hidden beneath marriage proposals, baby woes and adoption. The innocence that he had desperately clung to still remained, but he no longer had to hold it there.

And the paradise that had eluded him for so long finally showed his face, and it was the face of Aphrodite; his princess. His Monica. She was paradise, and he hadn't needed money or maids, and thankfully had not needed a houseboy.

Chandler had realised that paradise was happiness, but happiness was not something that could only be delivered by his parents, a gesture of love to him and each other. Happiness was something that could be delivered by a lot of things, but mostly by the new parents.

Jack and Erica would grow up, never having to lose their innocence at a young age; always knowing what their paradise truly was. Because, unlike his parents, there was love and paradise between he and Monica.

But paradise did come with its downfalls. As much as it made life perfect, Thanksgiving still left a bitter taste in his mouth.

But then, he basked under the watchful eyes of a Greek goddess, and they had never celebrated Thanksgiving, so he supposed he was off the hook.


End file.
